Interventions for Posttraumatic Stress With Children Exposed to Violence: Factors Associated With Treatment Success

In the past 15 years, there have been a substantial number of rigorous studies examining the effectiveness of various treatments for child trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although a number of review articles exist, many have focused on randomized controlled trials or specific treatment methodologies, both of which limit the ability to draw conclusions across studies and the statistical power to test the effect of particular treatment characteristics on treatment outcomes. The current study is a review and meta-analysis of 74 studies examining treatments for children exposed to violence.

After reviewing the literature, we examined the relationship of a variety of treatment characteristics (e.g., group or individual treatments) and sample characteristics (e.g., average age) on treatment effect sizes.

Results indicated that individual therapies and those with exposure paradigms within a cognitive-behavioral therapy or skills-building framework show the most promise, but treatment is somewhat less effective for those with more severe symptomology and for younger children.

Future treatments should consider the developmental and social contexts that may impede treatment progress for young children and consider how best to develop the effectiveness of group interventions that can be readily delivered in settings of mass trauma.